As we have been having some much welcomed warm and sunny weather the girls have been enjoying some lovely dust baths. Unfortunately the girls use dust bathing as a time for pulling feathers from each other. They seem to see it as a lovely social activity, dust bath together, preen together and a friendly pulling of feathers together. What could possibly be wrong with that!
This is so frustrating because Dotty’s head has just started to get feathers back and now her bare neck patch is getting wider. They seem to target the area with existing bare parts which are Dotty and Bluebell’s neck and Dotty and Pepper’s bottom. Bluebell still has a lovely fluffy bottom and Pepper still has a lovely fluffy neck.
At the weekend when Bluebell and Dotty were in a dust bath Pepper would just casually scratch and peck nearby, then when she thought I wouldn’t notice she would sneak closer and try to pull a feather. I would tell her off and spray her with the water spray. She would then run off looking as if I had hurt her feelings but then casually creep back like a naughty child and try again. Eventually we had to go out and I had the feeling that as soon as my back was turned she would probably be at it again.
Today it was much more communal with all three in a dust bath close together and each just leaning across to pull the downy under feathers from each other. I told them off and they broke away making me feel like a meanie breaking up a lovely party!
It’s obviously not a problem to them but it’s so frustrating to me to see them spoiling each others looks. Separating them is not an option as they are all three doing this. I am beginning to think I will never be able to stop them completely.
Dotty shakes her feathers
Dust bath in the sun
Togetherness
Bluebell stretches her leg
Pepper looks casual
They were enjoying this so much that they were purring. I hate to spoil it for them but I hate to see the feather pulling. I don’t know what else I can do but keep telling them off and spraying them with water when I catch them. I can’t watch them all the time though.
Click here to see the history of my flock.